Thorn in the Garden of Life

[losthunter]

Hunter paced his apartment, his phone in one hand, and a list of phone numbers in his other hand. He just got off the phone with Marcus, one of the six other people who had been given a gift by Kendra. And had learned that Marcus had been attacked by Austin.

Luckily, Marcus was able to get away, without any major side effects.

But Hunter was now worried about the others. And so he was making calls to everyone else who he had talked to, and warned them about Austin so they could stay safe.

And he knew it was time to face Austin again. But even though he felt like it was an emergency, Hunter knew that it would be better to make sure someone else came with him. He also knew exactly who he wanted to have by his side.

Jim. Austin attacked another person. I feel like I need to deal with this. Are you available to come with me?

Comments

[losthunter]

"Oh!" Hunter takes a moment to let that thought absorb in his mind.

"I don't have any sleeping pills here. And I don't want to leave you alone."

[boldygoing]

"No, probably not." While in theory, Hunter could probably lock him up for the time it would take to go and find some kind of sedative, the idea of being alone with his own thoughts is more disturbing than usual right now.

[losthunter]

"And I... I really don't like the idea of having to drug you. It is bad enough that we have a place to lock you up... I don't really know if I could do that." Hunter runs both hands over his head this time.

"It reminds me too much of that first couple of months with Lindy. How I treated her, because I was just so desperate to end my curse."

"And I really don't want to treat you... like a captive."

[boldygoing]

"Hunter..." Jim understands his concerns. He really does. There are no easy solutions, no good answers. But he has nightmares all the time, even without a curse dredging up the worst his memories have to offer. It just doesn't seem likely that he'll be able to sleep through the night normally. Or maybe at all.

"I just... I don't want to hurt you."

[losthunter]

Hunter wants to protest that Jim could never hurt him. But they already had a couple of close calls. And it pains him that he can't get through to Jim, when he is having a flashback.

"I will message Hermione. Maybe she can send us something." He sounds defeated. But they don't have any other solutions.

[boldygoing]

"We'll figure something out." Jim isn't entirely certain of that, but it's all he can say. It's just for two days, give or take... how long has it even been? He's lost track.

[losthunter]

A few moments after Hunter sends his message to Hermione, she sends him two bottles of a purple potion over his PINpoint. There is a long letter included with the bottles.

"Looks like she wants us to be informed on what this does..." Hunter picks up the letter. "Hello. These bottles both contain a Sleeping Draught, which you might find useful. Please note that as soon as Jim drinks the Sleeping Draught, he will immediately feel tired and want to go to sleep. Here are some simple guidelines to follow."

"First, make sure you are ready for bed, before drinking the Sleeping Draught. Make sure that you eat one hour before taking the potion. Make sure that you go to the bathroom 10 minutes before taking the potion."

"The Sleeping Draught is designed to give you a dreamless sleep. We are hopeful that this will mean Jim won't suffer any flashbacks, and will just sleep. He might have a flashback upon awakening, so please make sure you are watching for that. We have provided you with two, so you can sleep twice within the two days that this curse will last. Please ensure that the second is taken roughly the same time of day, on the second day, that you took the first."

"I hope this helps. Love Hermione." Hunter glances at Jim, to see if he has any questions.

[boldygoing]

Jim wants to pick up one of the potions to get a closer look at it, but the last time he was holding something he ended up hurling it across the room, so he doesn't. "We talked about this kind of potion before once," he says instead, and he really hopes it doesn't come with the sort of drawbacks that he had with conventional sleep aids in the past. "I wouldn't use it long term, but... it's only two days."

[losthunter]

"And we are only going to use it, so we both can sleep." Hunter doesn't like that they have to resort to this. But what other option do they have?

[boldygoing]

Jim nods, also uneasy about it. Sleeping is one thing. Being forced unconscious is another. And while he feels that this might be one of the safer places to allow himself to be so fully knocked out for the night, it still goes against his survival instincts. If something were to happen, and he's unable to wake up... At least Hunter is here to keep him out of danger.

"I think we probably shouldn't share a bed," Jim suggests, reluctant to say it. While another person might be a comfort, if the potion doesn't work quite as expected, he would be horrified if he woke to find he'd strangled Hunter in his sleep or something.

[losthunter]

Hunter doesn't quite manage hiding the hurt and guilt from appearing on his face, when Jim mentions that they shouldn't share a bed right now. He knows it is because of a good reason. That Jim doesn't want to hurt Hunter accidentally. But it still sucks that he can't even give Jim that physically contact, and support, while he sleeps.

"I can move things around, so I can sleep nearby, while you take the bed." He is used to sleeping on random furniture.

[boldygoing]

Jim doesn't miss seeing the look on Hunter's face, which makes him feel even worse about the whole thing. "I'd like that... Having you in the room is way better than being alone."

[losthunter]

Hunter nods slightly. He reaches out to gently touch Jim's face. "Whenever you feel ready, we will eat something. And then get you ready to take the potion."

[boldygoing]

Jim involuntarily shivers, automatically reaching up to pat at the pocket containing the ration bars he's taken out of his stash, reassuring himself that it's still there. He doesn't go into a flashback just yet, though. He'd never thought he'd be grateful for a moment where the only thing he's experiencing is his typical brand of anxieties.

"An hour before, she said?"

[losthunter]

"Yes. And I think we should have a small meal." And not have to use those ration bars.

[boldygoing]

Jim isn't sure why, but he can't really object. There's plenty of food in the apartment, and he has his emergency stash, just in case. That's exactly what it's for. He just never really expected to use it.

"Something stupidly unhealthy," he suggests. The rescue team had to feed the survivors of Tarsus slowly, carefully, only a little at a time. Nothing too extravagant or unhealthy, needing to supplement the IV nutrition and avoid shocking their systems. He doesn't want to bring up those memories if he can avoid it.

[losthunter]

"Hmmmm... pizza? Deep fried chicken? Steak?" Hunter can think of a few options that would be considered unhealthy. "Followed by ice cream and strawberries."

[boldygoing]

"Fried chicken sounds good." Pizza seems like too much of a wild card, and while Jim appreciates a good steak, he's not sure that's the best choice if they want something light. Greasy chicken is exactly the sort of thing he hadn't been allowed to have, and he can't think of any bad memories tied to the flavor.

[losthunter]

"Perfect. I will get my deep fryer out. Would you prefer fries? or wedges?" Hunter enjoys getting to cook for guests.

[boldygoing]

"No preference. Whatever you want to do." He wants to offer to help, but that seems like a terrible idea. There's a reason that Hermione had to lock up all the obvious weapons. Letting him hang around a burn hazard in his current condition is the worst idea.

He's not very good at just sitting idle, though, and he glances over towards the art studio part of the apartment. There's a bit of a mess, the paints and brushes abandoned when Jim began reliving the attack on Daystrom. It's a good thing Hunter has dropcloths put down, because otherwise there'd be a decent amount of paint spatter on the floor. "You want me to clean up?"

[losthunter]

"That would be great, if you could do that." Hunter doesn't want Jim to feel like he can't help, just because of what is going on.

"And then, we could maybe have a living room picnic?" They are going to end up eating with their hands tonight. And might as make it nice, even though it is a necessity to avoid cutlery.

[boldygoing]

"Sure. That'd be fine."

Jim sets to work, locating all the paintbrushes - including the one he threw, which he finds near the balcony - and sets to cleaning the bristles of paint, figuring that's one of the higher priority things to do, before the paint dries. The canvases themselves aren't quite finished, but this kind of paint seems like it's okay to come back to it later, so he leaves them alone to dry. Hunter's looks way better than his own, but he supposes it isn't that bad for a first try, and at least he got one good memory out of the ordeal. Not enough to make up for the awful shit he's already experienced, and what's surely going to come in the next day or two, but it's still something, at least.

[losthunter]

Hunter takes out his deep fryer, preparing the chicken and cutting up some potatoes into wedges. While the oil heats up, he mixes up a batter for both the chicken and the wedges.

He keeps track of what Jim is doing, by just checking on him every now and then. Just to make sure that he is okay, and that he is not being affected by another flashback. They don't know how many more Jim will have to face, before he is able to take the Sleeping Draught.

He just hopes that they can make through the next day-and-a-half.

[boldygoing]

This doesn't remind Jim of anything other than visiting with Hunter, so he has little problem cleaning up the art mess. He's aware that Hunter keeps checking on him, and under ordinary circumstances that might bother him, as if he can't be trusted to handle the art supplies or something. Now it just bothers him because he really can't.

It also frustrates him that it was the conversation that triggered his last flashback. The painting had been going fine, for the most part. But not being able to talk to anybody... that's not going to happen. And it feels like he's stepping on eggshells in his own damn brain.

It'd be annoying if it wasn't kind of terrifying.

By the time he has all the paint tubes capped and everything put away - more or less where it's supposed to go - the apartment has begun to smell pretty good, which helps with his mood a little.

[losthunter]

Hunter places the deep-fried chicken in the fryer first. And he finds a blanket, while it is cooking, to lay it out in the living room.

He knows that this is not an ideal situation for either of them.

Looking up at Jim, he smiles slightly. "My art room looks great. Thanks for cleaning everything up."